High Point Market – October 2014

A common conversation at every Market is how busy it is….questions of how busy it is on the street, in the building, in the showrooms. In the nearly 3 decades that I have been attending, traffic is less as there are fewer retailers in business and smaller entourages who attend market.

Jody and Gloria at High Point Market

On the flip side, it appears to me that there are also more designers attending than I can remember and more product vendors who are appealing to them. I suspect that some designers have replaced some high-end retailers who are no longer with us (and I for one am very sad to see them go). And there are internet sites who share that high end substitution and of course, customers who don’t value fine quality furnishings and shop lower on the list of retailers.

What I find very cool about the emerging designer/vendor relationship are the vendors who are vying for designer business and are creating interesting product. In addition to product showrooms in the buildings, HP Market has “Pockets of Cool” like Interhall, Market Suites, Art and Antiques at Market Square where the vendors are often new or in a new location, that offers new and interesting product and presentation….and fabric! Kravet made a splash this year with fabric and furniture. And while they have had a space for years, they (not surprisingly as they are first at so many things) are filling the fabric vacancy at Market that is critical to designer attendance. Thibault wallcoverings and fabric showed, and Phillip Jeffries, the king of cool and does so much with such a tiny space. Stanley’s new uptown Crestaire collection was lovely, and the designer PR party that Gretchen Mellon Aubuchon threw was also a new direction at Market – linking a designer or two with a brand, even if they didn’t participate in its design. Opportunity abounds for those who are looking to create it! I didn’t get to Stickley, although I heard it was a great presentation this Market, as was Century – who always pleases.

There were some disappointments with some of the older, established lines – either poorly presented or confusingly presented, and I was disappointed to see such beautiful product not shown to the fullest. The good news is that overall the energy was good, creativity was flowing, and enthusiasm for the future was high…and that’s good for all of us!

Thanks, Rich….always good to hear from you. Please feel free to share my posts with other designer pals…or to use them in one of your sales meetings! Missed seeing you at HP Market…Vegas in January? xo Jody

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